Sect. XIV.

The
Psalms.

§. 3. The proper Psalms for the morning service are Psalms xlviii. lxviii. The xlviiith is an hymn in honour of Jerusalem, as particularly chosen for the place of God's worship, and for that reason defended by his more immediate care from all invasions of enemies. It is also a form of thanksgiving to God for his mercy, in permitting men to meet in his solemn service, and so in the mystical sense is an acknowledgment of his glorious mercies afforded to the church of Christians under the Gospel, and consequently very suitable to this day, whereon we commemorate the greatest mercy that ever was vouchsafed to any church in the world, viz. the immediate inspiration of the Apostles by the Holy Ghost, at which all that saw it marvelled; and though many that were astonished were cast down, yet through the assistance of the same Spirit the Church was that very day augmented by the access of three thousand souls 17. The other Psalm for the morning is the lxviiith, sung at first in commemoration of the great deliverance afforded to the Israelites, and of the judgments inflicted on their enemies; and contains a prophetical description of the Ascension of Christ, who went up on high, and led captivity captive, and received gifts for men; which benefits he soon after, as on this day, poured upon the Apostles, at which time the earth shook, and the heavens dropped at the presence of God; who sent (as it were) a gracious rain upon his inheritance, and refreshed it when it was weary; and when the Lord gave the word, great was the company of the preachers.

The Psalms for the evening are Psalms civ. cxlv. The civth is an elegant and pious meditation on the power and wisdom of God, in making and preserving all the creatures of the world. It is used on this day, because some verses are very applicable to the subject of it: for we herein celebrate the miraculous works of the Holy Ghost, who made the clouds his chariot, and walked upon the

"Dei amore, ut puriores efficerentur ad recipiendum donum Spiri"tús Sancti." Quorum, fere ad Verbum, consentit Manuscriptus alter hoc Titulo, Doctrina quomodo Curatus possit Sanctorum vitas per annum populo denunciare. Et certe quod de Lacte Vaccarum refert, illud percognitum habeo in agro Hamtoniensi (an et alibi nescio) decimas Lacticiniorum venire vulgo sub hoc nomine, The Whites of Kine; apud Leicestrenses etiam Lacticinia vulgariter dicuntur Whitemeat.

17 Acts ii. 41.

wings of the wind: the earth, at first, trembled at the look of Sect. him; but it was afterwards renewed by his breath, and XXIII. filled with the fruits of his works. The cxlvth Psalm is a' form of solemn thanksgiving to God, descanting on all his glorious attributes, very proper for this day, whereon we declare the power of the third Person of the glorious Trinity, and talk of his worship, his glory, his praise and wondrous works; we speak of the might of his marvellous acts, and tell of his greatness.

stle, and

§. 4. The first Lesson for the morning 18 contains the The Leslaw of the Jewish Pentecost, or Feast of Weeks, which was sons, Epia type of ours: for as the Law was at this time given to Gospel. the Jews from Mount Sinai, so also the Christians upon this day received the new Evangelical Law from heaven, by the administration of the Holy Ghost. The first Lesson for the evening 19 is a prophecy of the conversion of the Gentiles to the kingdom of Christ, through the inspiration of the Apostles by the Spirit of God; the completion of which prophecy is recorded in both the second Lessons 20, but especially in the portion of Scripture for the Epistle, which contains a particular description of the first wonderful descent of the Holy Ghost upon the Apostles, who were assembled together in one place, in expectation of that blessed Spirit, according to the promise of our Saviour mentioned in the Gospel, which, together with the Collect and Epistle, were taken from the old Liturgies.

SECT. XXIV. Of the Monday and Tuesday in
Whitsun-Week.

THE Whitsun-week was not entirely festival like that Whitsun-
of Easter; the Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday being week, how
observed as fasts, and days of humiliation and supplication observed.
formerly
for a blessing upon the work of Ordination, (which was
usually on the next Sunday,) in imitation of the Apostoli-
cal practice mentioned Acts xiii. 3." But the Monday
and Tuesday were observed after the same manner and for
the same reasons as in the Easter-week *: so that what

* The Wednesday was also observed formerly in England as a festival 22.

Chap. V. has been said concerning the observation of them, may suffice for these; wherefore I shall forbear all repetitions, and proceed immediately to their proper services.

The Col

lects, Epi

stles, and Gospels.

The Les

sons.

§. 2. The Collects, Epistles, and Gospels for both these days are ancient: both the Epistles are concerning the baptism of converts, (this being, as we have already noted, one of the more solemn times appointed for baptism,) and concerning their receiving of the Holy Ghost by the hands of the Apostles, (this being also a time for confirmation, which was always performed by the imposition of hands.) The Gospel for Monday seems to have been allotted for the instruction of the new-baptized; teaching them to believe in Christ, and to become the children of light. The Gospel for Tuesday seems to be appointed, as it is one of the Ember or Ordination weeks; the design of it being to put a difference between those who are lawfully appointed and ordained to the ministry, and those who without any commission arrogate to themselves that sacred office.

§. 3. The first Lesson for Monday morning 23 is a history of the confusion of tongues at Babel, whereby the Church reminds us, that as the confusion of tongues spread idolatry through the world, and made men lose the knowledge of God and true religion; so God provided by the gift of tongues to repair the knowledge of himself, and lay the foundation of a new religion. In the first Lesson for Monday evening 24 is recorded the resting of God's Spirit upon the seventy elders of Israel, to enable them to ease Moses of part of his burden in governing that numerous people; which exactly prefigured the descent of the same holy Spirit at this time upon the Apostles and others, to the same end, viz. that the care of all the churches might not lie upon one single person: and accordingly the second Lessons for this day's instruct us that these spiritual gifts, of whatever sort they be, are all given to profit withal, and therefore must be all made use of to edification, as to their true and proper end.

The first Lesson for Tuesday morning 26 contains the inspiration of Saul and his messengers by the Spirit of God; and that at evening 27 is a prophecy of Moses, how God would in after-times deal with the Jews upon their re

23 Gen. xi. to ver. 10.

24 Numb. xi. ver. 16.

25 1 Cor. xii. and chap. xiv. 26.

"26 1 Sam. xix. ver. 18.

27 Deut. xxx.

pentance. The morning second Lesson 28 forbids us to Sect. quench the Spirit of God, or to despise the prophecies utter- XXIV. ed by it: but because there are many false prophets gone into the world, the second Lesson for the afternoon 29 warns us not to believe all teachers who boast of the Spirit, but to try them by the rules of the Catholic faith.

SECT. XXV. Of Trinity-Sunday.

IN all the ancient Liturgies we find that this day was of how anlooked upon only as an octave of Pentecost; the ob- cient date. servation of it as the feast of the Trinity being of a later date; for since the praises of the Trinity were every day celebrated in the doxology, hymns, and creeds; therefore the Church thought there was no need to set apart one particular day for that which was done on each 30. But afterwards when the Arians, and such like heretics, were spread over the world, and had vented their blasphemies against this divine mystery, the wisdom of the Church thought it convenient, that though the blessed Trinity was daily commemorated in its public offices of devotion, yet it should be the more solemn subject of one particular day's meditation. So that from the time of Pope Alexander III. if not before, the festival of the holy Trinity was observed in some churches on the Sunday after Pentecost, in others on the Sunday next before Advent. Until in the year 1305, it was made an established feast, as it stands in our present calendar, by Benedict XIII.31

ter Whit

§. 2. The reason why this day was chosen as most sea- Why obsonable for this solemnity, was because our Lord had no served the Sunday afsooner ascended into heaven, and the Holy Ghost descended upon the Church, but there ensued the full know- Sunday. ledge of the glorious and incomprehensible Trinity, which before that time was not so clearly known. The Church therefore having dedicated the foregoing solemn festivals to the honour of each several Person by himself, thereby celebrating the Unity in Trinity; it was thought highly seasonable to conclude those solemnities, by adding to them one festival more to the honour and glory of the whole Trinity together, therein celebrating the Trinity in Unity. But in the Greek Church, the Monday in Whit

28 1 Thess. v. ver. 12. to ver. 24. 29 1 John iv. to ver. 14. 30 Decretal. Greg. ix. 1. 2. Tit. 9. c. 2. col. 596. Paris. 1601.

31 See Alexander's Decretal. 1. 2.

Tit. 9. c. 2. as cited by Mr. Johnson
in his Ecclesiastical Laws, A. D. 1268.
35. Though I suppose for 1305, Mr.
Johnson meant 1405, for Benedict
XIII. was not chosen Pope till 1394.

Chap. V. sun-week is set apart for this purpose, the Sunday following being with them the festival of All-Saints 32.

The Lessons.

Epistle and
Gospel.

§. 3. This mystery was not clearly delivered to the Jews, because they, being always surrounded by idolatrous nations, would have easily mistaken it for a doctrine of plurality of Gods: but yet it was not so much hidden in those times, but that any one with a spiritual eye might have discerned some glimmerings of it dispersed through the Old Testament. The first chapter in the Bible seems to set forth three Persons in the Godhead; for besides the Spirit of God which moved upon the waters, ver. 2. we find the great Creator (at the 26th verse) consulting with others about the greatest work of his creation, the making of man, of which we may be assured the Word or Son of God was one, since all things were made by him, and without him was not any thing made that was made33. So that those two verses fully pointing out to us the Father, Son, and Holy Ghost, make this a very proper Lesson for the solemnity of the day. The reason of the choice of the other first Lesson is as 34 obvious: it records the appearance of the great JEHOVAH to Abraham, whom the Patriarch acknowledges to be the Judge of all the earth; and who therefore, by vouchsafing to appear with two others in his company, might design to represent to him the Trinity of Persons. But this sacred mystery is no where so plainly manifested as in the second Lesson for the morning 35, which at one and the same time relates the baptism of the Son, the voice of the Father, and the descent of the Holy Ghost: which though they are (as appears from this chapter) three distinct Persons in number, yet the second Lesson at evening 36 shews they are but one in es

sence.

§. 4. The Epistle and Gospel are the same that in ancient services were assigned for the octave of Whitsunday: the Gospel especially seems to be very proper to the season, as being the last day of the more solemn time of baptism; though they are neither of them improper to the day, as it is Trinity Sunday: for in both the Epistle and Gospel are mentioned the three Persons of the blessed Trinity; and that noted hymn of the angels in heaven, mentioned in the portion of Scripture appointed for the Epistle, Holy, holy, holy, Lord God Almighty, seems of itself to be a

32 Smith's Account of the Greek Church, page 34.

33 John i. 3.

34 Genesis xviii.
35 Matthew iii.

36 1 John v.